Sometimes were just too late
by lileigh760
Summary: Manny and Craig have been together for 8 years and are still going strong. She's a famous actress and he's an established musician. What happens when a horrible tragedy befalls them? Can they pick up the peices and put their lives back together? Or will t


**So this is another One shot FF for the FF contest i'm participating in. It's sad so prepare yourselves. To tell you the truth I think this is my best one yet besides the IS ones i've written. I hope you enjoy it.**

**Adrienne**

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"Elizabeth Ann Manning get your little but in here now." Came a irritated voice from the bottom of the stairs. A small child of about 3 with dark chocolate eyes and deep chesnut hair peeked her head around the corner of the banister with a shy smile on her face. She glanced down at her mother who had a look of faint irritation on her face. "I'm sorry mommy, Barbie wanted to go swimming and she wouldn't fit in my potty." The small child replied using the puppy dog eyes she'd come to learn would more often than not get her out of whatever trouble she happened to get into that day. The look of irritation on Manny Santos Manning's face softened a bit and she bit her lip to keep from smiling. The truth was that Lizzy was her and Craig's pride and joy and no matter what little girl things she did, in her parents eyes the sun rose and the moon fell with their little miracle. Speaking of Craig he rounded the corner at a fast rate of speed and almost knocked his 6 month pregnant wife over. Manny let out a small giggle as she placed her arms around Craig to slow him down. "Hey there, you look like someone I used to know. He was a gorgeous rockstar, sometimes he even came home for dinner with that family." She said with a coy smile and a small wink. Craig smiled. "I also heard he had a beautiful actress wife and a little trouble making 3 year old." He said leaning in to kiss Manny on her lips. Their lip lock was cut short by the sound of Lizzy's small scream. Craig and Manny watched on in horror as their daughter tumbled from her place at the top of the stairs down to land at their feet.

"Oh baby. Please look at me." A panic ridden Manny chanted as she fell to her knees to caress her daughter's face. Craig had already dialed 911 on his cell phone as he dropped to the ground next to his hysterical wife. "Shh baby it's ok, she'll be ok, she has to be." Craig chanted in a small prayer. Lizzy hadn't made a sound or a movement since she'd found her place at the bottom of the stairs and Manny was feeling around for a pulse as she kissed her little girl all over her face. Tears fell from her eyes and dripped onto Lizzy's milky white skin which was still full with baby fat. After what seemed like hours but which was only the course of 10 minutes the paramedics had arrived and were carrying their daughter to the ambulance on a stretcher. The Manning's were running after them trying to see what was going on as the paramedics continued to revive their daughter. Manny was hysterically sobbing into Craig's arms as they watched the ambulance pull away from their 2 story walk up.

Manny and Craig found their way into the emergency room around 10 minutes later looking for their little girl. Craig walked up to the front desk of the nurses station and asked a nurse where Elizabeth Ann Manning had been taken. The nurse looked up at him with a look of sympathy on her face and simply told him that "Dr. Carter would be out in a few moments to speak with him and his wife."

Craig walked from the nurses station and sat down next to Manny who was still silently sobbing while holding her hands together waiting to know the condition of her little angel. What seemed like forever later a young man in a Doctors coat came walking towards them with his head down. "Mr. And Mrs. Manning?" He asked them. They both nodded their heads in quiet anticipation. "How is our little girl Dr." Manny managed to get out through small choked out sobs. "I'm so sorry. I don't know how to tell you this but there was nothing we could do. Your little girl died instantly from the fall. She broke her neck. Please accept my deepest condolences." He murmured as Manny collapsed to the ground in despair. "No no no, not my little girl. Please anything but my little girl." She sobbed out. Craig collapsed next to his wife on the hospital floor and held her tightly in shock as a silent tear made it's way down his face. His little miracle. His sweet angel was gone forever.

The next 5 days were the hardest of their lives. They had went from being the perfect Hollywood family with a perfect life, to burying their 3 year old little girl and not even looking at each other. It hurt too much. Since the funeral Manny and Craig had avoided each other at all cost. For Manny just looking at Craig and seeing the emptiness in his eyes broke her heart even more and she didn't know what to say to bring the life back into their lives. Craig would glance over at his wife and make sure she was ok before looking away in pain. He saw Lizzy everywhere he went. He saw her the most in Manny. The truth was that Lizzy had been the spitting image of Manny and it broke his heart to see his little girl's eyes in someone else. Someone who was still alive when his baby wasn't.

For the next 2 month's their lives were a never ending routine of getting up from their separate bedrooms. Showering, dressing, eating, answering phone calls filled with condolences, barely glancing at each other all the while their hearts were still shattered. There was a huge hole where Lizzy had been and neither knew how to fix the unbearable rift inbetween them. It was later that night that Manny was in her bed reading the pilot for a new show that was coming out when she had a sharp contraction. "8 minutes apart." She whispered to herself. She'd been having contractions for the last 2 hours but didn't want to talk to Craig. This pain was too sharp though. Something didn't feel right. She went to call for Craig but as soon as she got "Crai" out she started to spin. Her eyes became glassy and the darkness started to fade in from the background enveloping her.

"Alright Manuela this is it, one final push." A doctor screamed at Manny who was fighting to bring their child into the world. Craig stood in the background never taking his eyes from the sight before him. How could he have treated her so coldly the past few months when they had been hurting so much? He should have been there to comfort her. He knew what he needed to do to push the fear from his wife's eyes. He walked over towards her and grabbed her hand. She looked up at him with an ocean full of hope and love and let out a yell that could awake the dead. A moment later there was a loud wail followed by smaller wails that told her that her baby had a healthy set of lungs. The doctor walked over to Manny and Craig and handed them their little bundle of joy. "Congratulations you have a healthy baby boy". The doctor replied happily. Craig had wrapped an arm around his wife and stared into the eyes of his second little miracle. "Were gonna be ok baby, were gonna be just fine."


End file.
